The State of the Church in Canada

The Gospel Coalition has posted an interview with John Mahaffey, senior pastor of West Highland Baptist Church in Hamilton, Ontario. The Church in Canada faces many challenge. The largest challenge-- and perhaps, opportunity-- the Church faces is the rapid secularization in Canada. While some sections of America might still be living under the false pretense that it is a Christian nation, such illusions are far less likely to be found on Canadian soil. 

I encourage readers to read Mahaffey's observations about the state of the Church in Canada, how immigration has affected the Church's mission, and comments about the upcoming Gospel Coalition conference in Cambridge, Ontario at Heritage College and Seminary (speakers include: Don Carson, John Neufeld, and Stephen Um). 

Some interesting comments from the interview that merit highlighting: 

• "In 1900, 25 percent of Canadians were evangelical in conviction. That number fell to 8 percent in the 1980s, but has since rebounded to almost 11 percent."
• The United Church of Canada's slide into theological liberalism has done great harm to the body of Christ in Canada. It's gradual, but sure, departure from the historical gospel of Jesus Christ has left a "lost generation". The challenge that remains for the Church in Canada is to preach the Gospel to those who have been in Church, but never been confronted with the powerful proclamation of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. One of my most unfortunate experiences with the United Church of Canada was when my wife and I went to see Handel's Messiah with a friend at a United Church in Toronto. The cross had been replaced by a rainbow flag. 
• Canada's high rates of immigration requires the church to ask serious questions about contextualization. For instance, without changing or compromising the message, how do I most effectively share the gospel with a Sikh who recently emigrated from India? 
• French Canada represents a mission field that is largely unreached and unexposed to the gospel. If considering a mission field, one need go no farther than Quebec City or Montreal. 

Here's a video of one of Canada's largest worship centers: